Tiger Friends
by Animation Universe 2005
Summary: This is a little what-if idea of when 5 year old Max meets a 14 year old assassin named Kaizer and wound up becoming friends? This is for SpiritualLoneWolfXIII! Enjoy!
1. Life of an Assassin

SpiritualLoneWolfXIII requested me to do this and this is a what if Kaizer met Max during his time of turmoil with his birth parents? This is what I came up with.

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Tiger Friends

by: Terrell James

Chapter 1: Life of an Assassin

Somewhere in China...

It was just another bright sunny day in this part of China, like any other ordinary day...until something disturbing this way comes and it was a masked assassin walking around with his black katana and multiple weapons around him, making sure that no one's caught him or looking for his targets to assassinate with. His ears quickly perked up as he heard some rustling from the first distance and he takes out his sword and got himself ready for what's coming his way.

He kept himself focused and steady as to who's coming for him and when he looks around, he sees a team of bandits coming in and when they saw the young assassin, one of them snorted and said, "If it isn't the Demon of Death, Kaizer Beelzaba."

The assassin growls at them and he said, "If you came here to fight, now's the time to shut up and fight me."

"Like, I'm really scared to be taken down by a itty bitty kitty." one bandits said, mocking fear in his voice.

That literally irritated Kaizer to no end to be called an 'itty bitty kitty' and he held onto his katana with a tight grip and he said, "You know, you're gonna regret calling me that name, right?"

"Why is that?" asked the other bandit.

With that, Kaizer brought in his katana and he looked at them in an angrily yet furious way and said, "Why don't you let my weapons do the talking?"

In no time, Kaizer comes at the bandits, fighting and punching them out in many ways possible and when one tried to knock Kaizer out, he went ahead and sliced one bandit's hand off, swiftly as possible...causing the bandit to scream in deep pain and Kaizer went ahead and assassinated the mess out of the bandit with his sword, giving him 35 stab wounds and sliced him up real good. Blood was all over the sword, but Kaizer could care less because he wasn't done yet.

The rest of the remaining bandits were gonna stand for that, so they went ahead to attack Kaizer for slaying their bandit member, but the rest of them got the worst of it...for Kaizer punched, kicked and slayed every bandit that ever stopped him and the more Kaizer assassinated them, the more serious he got.

After his assassin spree, he looked at all of the bandits he killed and just said, "Never underestimate the Demon of Death."

To ensure that he's never seen or caught, he threw some smoke bombs and as they went off, he quickly ran out of the murder scene and headed his way back to the academy he grew up and trained there to be an assassin. Soon enough, one person went towards Kaizer and said, "Hey, the Academy wants to put you on a mission."

That rose Kaizer's eyebrows a little bit and asked, "What kind of mission?"

"Go check it with someone at the Academy. Says it's really big."

Kaizer thought about that for a minute, but lets it pass because when it comes to his duty, that's way more important and never thinks it over regardless of the consequences that comes with it and he walks through the steps of the ANBU Academy, looking forward to see what the important mission is.

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What ya think so far? Stay tuned for more!


	2. Assigned Mission

And here's how Kaizer gets his assignment.

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Chapter 2: Assigned Mission

As Kaizer heads inside the ANBU Academy, he wasn't quite sure what to expect or what the mission is, but whatever it is...he will not turn any assignment down when it comes to who he wants to target or if a target is chosen for him, but it doesn't really matter to Kaizer because any target is good enough for him to kill and survive in the world. As he faced the master at the academy, Kaizer looks at him and asked, "You have a mission for me?"

"Yes, I do." the master replied, then gives Kaizer a picture of the target.

Kaizer looks up at this person and the tiger's occupation is the same way as his; only much more than that and he said, "Who's this?"

"His name is Yoshida. He calls himself the 'white tiger serial assassinator'. Wanted all over China and his reputation is killing anyone and anything that stands in his way." the master replied.

To know that Kaizer's up against another assassin sparks an outcry for him and he lets out a very angry growl because there's already one assassin around these parts and it's Kaizer himself. The last thing he needs is to lose out to another assassin and he said, "Where do I find this guy?"

"He's around in the further most parts here. Wherever this guy is, I want you to go out there, find him and once you do, slaughter him like you never slaughtered anyone before...without your weapons. Let him know that there is only room for one assassin in this world and it's you." the master added.

Kaizer lets all of those words sunk in and he believes that he'll bring this guy down and attack him like never before and with a determined look in his face, he nods his head and said, "I'll take it. Before the end of this day, I'm gonna get rid of this guy and give him a reminder that I'm the real assassin."

Just as Kaizer was set to leave, the master tells him, "Do not disappoint me."

"When have I ever disappointed you?" asked Kaizer.

The master bowed to Kaizer and the white tiger assassin bowed back to him and left the hallways, heading to his room to pack up a few things, check to see if he's got his weapons with him and looks to the sky with a very serious look in his face and said to himself, "This assassin guy doesn't know what he's gonna get to. No mercy."

And with that, he departed from the Academy to fulfill on this mission to take down this dangerous assassin, whomever he is with enough sense to go out of his way to kill this person, no matter what it takes. But he can handle this guy without the use of his weapons.

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Sorry it was short. Had to speed up time. Stick around for more!


	3. Face to Face

Kaizer finally meets Xiaoshin!

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Chapter 3: Face to Face

Kaizer was well on his way to find this assassin and he knows that he is completely ruthless when it comes to who he'll strike first and he knows that there will be only one assassin around these parts and that is him and only him, no one else. Of all the missions he's gone through, most of those involve killing and slaying anyone he comes across his path and even ones that aren't looking for trouble, he kills them anyway. But in this mission, he has to fight this assassin without using his weapons and although it was a first, he still has to get the job done regardless.

To Kaizer, a target is a target...and he's not stopping until his victims get what's coming to him and show absolutely zero remorse for his actions. Along the way, he sees a couple of people coming at him and he stayed on his toes for anyone that stands in the way and one of them even wanted to start a fight with him.

"Well...if it ain't the vigilante assassin himself. Who are you slaying this time?" asked one troublemaker.

Kaizer growls at him as he breaks out his sword and he said, "You...if you don't get out of here."

"And who's gonna make us, you killer pussy?" asked another troublemaker.

That one comment proved to be the final straw for Kaizer and roared directly at their faces and he said, "Never call me that name again!"

He wasted no time clawing every troublemaker that comes his way; from slicing them with his bare hands to punching them with his fist and continued knocking them until their bodies were laying lifeless. All of the troublemakers were screaming in ultimate terror and horror to Kaizer's ultimate assassinating duty.

After just 6 minutes of pure bloodshed, Kaizer panted heavily and looked at all of his victims he slayed and took one look at them and just walked away like nothing really happened and continued on his mission to find this well-known assassin. Whatever the case, he's definitely gonna slay this guy for real.

It didn't take long for Kaizer to hear some distant footsteps from the background and his ears perked up to hear them coming by quickly and he looks around the forest and shouted, "Show yourself now!"

Kaizer braced himself for what's happening next and he's definitely gonna break in the slaying if this person comes closer to him and he hears the footsteps going faster and faster and that made Kaizer tense up even more to see who's there.

As he looks around, he sees this random figure with a cape coming in and lands down on the tree, facing Kaizer for the first time and he said, "Isn't it way past your bedtime?"

"Shut up and show yourself." Kaizer said, with a growl.

Just then, the figure shows up as a white tiger, about mid or late 20's and such, wearing a silver dark cape on his back with a sword on his side and he said to the assassin, "So...you're the Demon of Death, I hear."

Kaizer instantly looked up at this guy and he said, "And what gave it away?"

"Most wanted list. Looks like you and me have something in common; we're common fugitives and assassins." the tiger replied.

Then it dawned on him...he's the person that Kaizer is sent to attack and he angrily looked at him straight in the face and he said, "You're Xiaoshin, aren't ya?"

"It is as you say. I'm the assassin/rapist. Very vigilant and notorious...not to mention very dangerous." Xiaoshin added.

"I see...well, guess what? There's only room for one assassin and that's me." Kaizer said, sticking out his sword and placing it directly close to his neck.

Xiaoshin chuckled at the tiger's incompetence and he said, "You really think you'll actually assassinate me?"

"I don't just think...I know and I do. Now are you gonna keep talking or will I kill you now?" asked Kaizer, getting fed up with Xiaoshin questioning his ability.

"Or I can fight you." Xiaoshin said, with a smirk.

Kaizer glanced down at the adult assassin and said, "That crossed my mind."

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Xiaoshin finally shows himself! Let the weapons-free battle begin!


	4. Assassin vs Assassin

Kaizer vs. Xiaoshin is here!

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Chapter 4: Assassin vs. Assassin

Almost immediately, Kaizer and Xiaoshin leap up in the air to tackle each other and Kaizer started strong, just by punching and kicking him straight to the face and shin hard and clawed him in the face and slammed him above the head and skull, threw him up in the air and has the intentions to leap up to the air and stab him, but Xiaoshin has other plans, which completely starts to frustrate Kaizer.

Xiaoshin grabs ahold of the tree branch, swung his entire body around, flies through the air and pummels down on Kaizer and slamming him down on the ground. Kaizer grunts as he rolls on the ground, but evidently gets himself back up, still willing to fight until he kills him. Kaizer grunts in frustraion and leaps to the sky and finish him, but Xiaoshin shoved Kaizer down to the ground.

That literally gets on Kaizer's nerves and he growls at him in response and keeps getting up and Xiaoshin loves the fact that he'll attack him easily, no matter how much Kaizer gets up. He chuckled softly and said, "I figured that you will not defeat me that easily."

"Shut the (bleep) up, you (bleep)hole. I'm going to slaughter you, no matter how many times you try to (bleep)ing stop me." Kaizer said, with a menacing tone to his voice.

"We will see about that." Xiaoshin replied.

Xiaoshin immediately comes after Kaizer and plans to assassinate him and pulls out his sword to fight him and Kaizer attacked him with his fists and knuckles to beat each other off, but their skills were equally matched to the point where they can't top each other out.

But Kaizer didn't care how strong he was, all he wanted to do is just slay him and get it done with. He goes faster and faster as he goes and Xiaoshin said, "Very fast...for a kitten."

Kaizer was so sick and tired of being called 'kitten' due to his age and he just went up and above the maximum with his fighting skill and he just claws off Xiaoshin's cape in half, which spells ultimate anger for the adult assassin. Xiaoshin growls at Kaizer for that and he said, "You'll live to regret that. That cape happens to be a hard find in China."

"Well...I'm pretty sure that it was easier for me to tear off." Kaizer said, with a smirk.

Xiaoshin growls at him and he just drives by attacks Kaizer; punching, kicking, clawing and beating him down until he's bloody black and blue and the minute Kaizer got knocked off, he couldn't believe that he could lose to this guy so easily.

But Kaizer wasn't gonna take any crap from Xiaoshin and just went right ahead and brought in his throwing stars and aimed it at him, yet somehow...he dodged all of the throwing stars and Kaizer gasped in shock and said, "Impossible..."

"Nothing is impossible." Xiaoshin said, with a smirk.

Kaizer growls at him and then lets out a ferocious roar that sounds like it can be heard everywhere and looks at Xiaoshin and he said, "That does it! You're gonna (bleep)ing die right now and you don't have the (bleep)ing balls to stop me!"

"Do I?" asked Xiaoshin.

Kaizer panted heavily and summons his black lightning to strike him down and once he did that, he saw that Xiaoshin dodged through the lightning and Kaizer continued to strike him in every which way he goes, yet there was no scratch in him. Kaizer gets increasingly frustrated with his persistence and he growls at him for that.

"(Bleep) YOU!" Kaizer screamed.

Just then, Xiaoshin gave Kaizer the knockout and punches him straight in the face and watches him lay there and he lets out a chuckle and said, "Nobody will ever stop me...not even you."

Xiaoshin went ahead and kicks Kaizer straight in the crotch and he said, "That's for my cape."

With that, Xiaoshin left the scene and as Kaizer slowly stands up, he panted heavily and watched Xiaoshin leave and he grunts in pain and for the first time in his life...he failed the assassination plan and it was the lowest point for Kaizer. He lets out a big sigh and he said, "How the (bleep) could I have failed this damn mission?"

He wasn't gonna let this happen again and he just wanted to see what's up with this guy and maybe...just maybe, recover from this setback and find where Xiaoshin lives.

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Upsetting, I know. Stick around and see what Kaizer's up to.


	5. Observing

And this is where Kaizer experiences what Xiaoshin's life is behind closed doors and along with that...he witnesses child cruelty with a young cub.

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Chapter 5: Observing

Soon after that defeat with Xiaoshin, Kaizer thought it was best to just find out where he is and what he's up to, so he remained vigilant and followed Xiaoshin without being noticed or caught, because who knows what could happen if Kaizer got caught or if someone catches him. Regardless of whatever could happen, Kaizer wouldn't take any chances and would slay the first victim that catches him on the act.

As Kaizer creeps around from tree to tree, he sees Xiaoshin heading back to his home and after the coast was clear, he popped his head out of the trees and decided to get a closer look to see what goes on behind closed doors, but to avoid being spotted. He goes up on one of the trees that's closer to the house and stood there, looking through the window.

Right away, he sees some crazy things happening there; he sees his wife or girlfriend for that matter constantly getting in his face, asking him where he's been and spitting out insane assumptions and Xiaoshin snarling back at her, stating that it's definitely none of her business and a violent argument ensues between the two of them where the girlfriend goes beserk and tackled him from behind and threatened to kill him unless he admits he cheated on her multiple times.

Watching this made Kaizer seem very disturbed just by looking at it and he said, "Those two are insane. If the master would've given me the opportunity to kill both of them, I would've."

He then sat down on that same tree to see what else is happening and observes all the dysfunctional and violent moments between Xiaoshin and the mate and one minute, they're arguing and fighting each other viciously and the next, they're making out like it's no one's business and then falls right back to the same patterns once again.

It started to really irritate Kaizer to the point where he wanted to get out, but the worst was yet to come...

"Where is that little brat?" asked Xiaoshin, angrily.

The white tigress lets out a sneer and asked, "How the (bleep) should I know? I've been with these snot-nosed brats all (bleep)ing day."

That made Kaizer raise an eyebrow as soon as he heard 'kids' come out of the tigress' mouth and realized that they have kids and whispered, "Kids?"

"MAXIMUS! GET YOUR (BLEEP)ING WORTHLESS TAIL OVER HERE NOW!" Xiaoshin shouted, on the top of his lung.

Just then, Kaizer sees a timid 5 year old white tiger cub walking by and he asked, "Yes, dad?"

Xiaoshin then smacked Maximus in the head, in which landed him on the floor and he said, "Why won't you face me like a man?!"

Kaizer was shocked to see what he was seeing and grew completely appalled that this is happening right now. Meanwhile, Maximus got himself up and his face was all messed up and said, "What did I do this time?"

"Quit whining! Why do you always make me want to shout at you?!" Xiaoshin yelled.

"I'm sorry! What did I do?" asked Maximus, whimpering.

Xiaoshin growls at him angrily and he just felt like having Max as a kid became the most regretful decision he's ever made and he answered, "For looking like your ugly-ass mother. You've been going outside, weren't you?"

"Yes. Why?" asked Maximus.

That was the one answer that got Xiaoshin riled up and he pinned him down to the wall with his bare arms and his claws digging on Max's shoulder, which made Max cry out in pain and broke down crying at the same time and Xiaoshin said, "If you weren't my son, I would've killed you first chance...just for existing."

"You're hurting me." Maximus replied, with tears coming out of his face.

"I don't give a (bleep) about you! I could kill you right now for just being born!" Xiaoshin yelled out.

The white tigress looked on and cared less about Max's safety and just ignored Max's cries for help due to her personal disgust with Xiaoshin and all Max could do was just try to set himself free from him and Xiaoshin shoved him down to the floor again and attempts to claw him, but Max left the living room already and headed upstairs to his room and lock the door.

Max panted heavily and placed himself under his bed, hoping that his father wouldn't find him under there, totally unaware that Kaizer was looking in the window of his room, observing what's going on. Less than a few seconds later, Xiaoshin burst into the room with his bare fists and looks for Max and the minute Xiaoshin caught him hiding under the bed, Max backed away from him, but immediately caught him by the tail and Max tried to get away from him by putting his claws on the floor, but it was proven to no avail.

"Let me go!" Max screamed, in terror.

"Shut up! Nobody cares about you and nobody will care about you! You're just worthless and pathetic!" Xiaoshin shouted, then viciously attacks Max in a brutal manner.

Max started screaming and crying while Xiaoshin violently attacks him with all of his might and Kaizer felt completely saddened for Max to go through that and after some serious violence, Xiaoshin leaves the room and he said to Max, "If I was given the option for you to die, I would kill you. Keep that in mind."

Xiaoshin slammed the door and Max was all bloodied and bruised up by his father and he just burst out crying with blood dripping out of his face, mixed in with his tears.

"What have I done to deserve this?" Max whispered, with a sob.

That really broke Kaizer down after seeing what had just happened and it reverts back to him losing his own parents years ago and he started to feel a little sorry for the cub because he was living a hugely rough life, even rougher than his own. He lets out a sigh and just couldn't get this out of his mind and he sees that it's getting a little late and he just left the place, without a trace.

As he left, he found that he couldn't stop thinking about that cub going through this time and living with that vicious assassin he calls 'father'. He started to feel just a little bit of sympathy for him as he walks out and it literally dawned on him...that he's not alone.

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Man, Kaizer must feel horrible to witness this. Stick around for more!


	6. Another Observation

Second day of Kaizer's observation. And what Kaizer's seeing...it's horrifying.

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Chapter 6: Another Observation

The next day, Kaizer went back to Xiaoshin's house to see what else is going on and as he got there, he climbs onto the trees without being seen or caught by the parents and after what had happened yesterday, Kaizer couldn't imagine going through this abuse if he was in Max's positionright about now. Just then, he looks at the window and sees Max coming in his mother's room and wonders what's happening and then...

She grabs Max and pulls him onto her bed and rubs his back slowly until she reaches the inside of his pants and that immediately made Max really uncomfortable...not to mention really disturbed as to what's going on. She then whispered in his ear, "Do you love your mother?"

Max was hesitant to respond to that and he said, "Y-Yes..."

"Then do whatever I ask." his mother replied.

Just then, his mother puts her fingers on Max's private area and rubs it slowly, making Max grunt and squirm in every aspect and he pulls his pants down, took his shirt off and just played with him to no extent. Kaizer was shocked and disgusted with what his mother was doing to the little cub, using him as her little toy.

He has never seen any mother molesting her own child and doing it in such a disgusting way; from sucking and licking Max's tail, yanking Max's groin and stripping out of her own clothes to continue molesting Max. Max was obviously disgusted and sickened by that, but what was he supposed to do? After 30 minutes of being molested, she forced Max to mate him and the cub absoultely refused to do so.

That set her off because she felt like Max was disobeying her for that reason and she threw him out of the bed and set him on the floor and she said, "You dare reject your own mother?"

Max backs away from her and she comes over to him and grabs him by the tail and drags him back to the bed and she said, "Just get back here and just screw me!"

"No!" Max said, with fright.

She growled at him and she just threw him back to the bed and said, "You're just like your father!"

Just when his mother was gonna brutalize him, Max quickly jumped out of the bed, grabbed his clothes and left the room right away and he hid in his room and placed the covers above his head. Kaizer definitely felt nothing but sorrow for the ltitle cub for going through this ordeal and he panted heavily and just felt angry inside that she would do that.

Soon enough, Xiaoshin comes back home and the white tigress drank another round of sake as she noticed him coming home and said, "Back so soon?"

Xiaoshin snarls at her and he said, "Were you (bleep)ing Maximus?"

She turned to Xiaoshin and walks uncoordinated and said, "So what if I was?"

That pretty much tells him that she attempted to and he roars out Max's name and immediately confronted him to no end as he broke through his room and caught Max laying down on his bed and shoves him down to the floor, waking him up.

As Max gets himself up, he got clawed in the face by his father and Max asked, "What did I do this time?!"

Max gets away from him as he runs out of the room and heads downstairs to avoid getting hit by his father and he ducked down when Xiaoshin too the big swing and instead, swung at the wife, knocking her down. The white tigress growls at him and she immediately leaped up at him and attacked him violently and pins him down, rolling around and Xiaoshin kicks her down to get her off and she lands on the wall.

Xiaoshin wasn't done with her and he violently beats, kicks and claws him hard and as Max pops his head out, he saw both parents viciously attack each other in front of him and that was a very scary sight to see.

Kaizer continued observing the fight and it just sickens him to no end and Max just back to his room to get away from the chaos and helplessly heard the shouting, fighting and things breaking all around and it was very hard to deal with, especially at the age of five and he stood next to the window to keep his mind off of stuff...until he saw someone standing on the tree.

Kaizer realized that Max has spotted him and hid behind the tree and gets away quickly, thinking that he might go after him.

Max actually saw that person standing on the tree and realized that they were watched the whole time, but he decided to keep his mouth shut about it and keep it to himself. He then thought to himself, 'Whoever he was...I wanna see him again. Just to see who he really is.'

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Kaizer got caught by a five year old! Wanna see what happens next? Stick around!


	7. Max Meets Kaizer

And finally...Max gets a chance to meet Kaizer face to face.

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Chapter 7: Max Meets Kaizer

As days went on, Max was sitting home alone in the house while his parents were away and he felt super-bored for being in the house all the time and he just felt like it was time to just head outside to wander around the forest for a while simply because it was one of his favorite things to do to get away from all the chaos and drama from his violent, abusive parents. As he sets foot outside though...he sees that same person coming in to observe things while standing on the trees.

Kaizer notices that there was no movement around the house, sensing that neither the cub or the parents were in the house, completely unaware that the cub spotted him already. Kaizer's ears perked up as soon as he heard footsteps coming closer and as he looked down, he sees the cub standing on the base of the tree and he said, "I thought I'd see you again."

Kaizer didn't know what to do now that he's been spotted again, so he quickly got down from the tree and made a run for it and Max follows him around in all fours, wanting to know why was he looking around the house and who he was. Kaizer panted heavily, thinking that he might've lost him, but surprisingly as he turns his back around...

Max was running right behind him and that completely alarmed Kaizer as he got chased by a young, innocent cub and he just ran faster and faster in the hopes to avoid him, but that only made Max run faster and faster than ever to catch up with him and as Max got closer and closer, Kaizer had no idea how faster he'll get to and he hopes that he'll stop and go back home, so he just kept going further away from him.

"I'm not here to hurt you!" Max exclaimed.

Kaizer didn't really say anything and just kept on running in every direction he could to lose the cub from a further distance because he had never been chased by a cub before or anyone else for that matter...with the exception of some bandits or something like that.

He panted heavily and turns around to see that he was alone, but somehow, Max was catching up with him from the other side of forest and that really surprised and shocked him that he's determined to catch up with him.

'This kid just won't give up, won't he?' Kaizer thought.

Realizing that Max is not gonna stop chasing him, Kaizer just grunts in frustration and just stops running and stands on a nearby tree, just panting heavily to catch his breath from all that running. Not long after, Max runs by and sees Kaizer standing there and he stops as well, panting heavily.

"You're fast. But I was faster. "Max said.

Kaizer panted heavily and looked up at the cub and said, "I noticed."

* * *

Sorry I made it short, but the next chapter will be longer. Promise.


	8. Common Ground

First meeting two white tigers.

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Chapter 8: Common Ground

Kaizer took time to sit down on the ground and the fact that Max was here provoked silence and he just looks at him for a while and Max immediately comes to him and said, "I've seen you before. Weren't you the guy in the mask that's stood on the window, looking at our house?"

Kaizer didn't really want to answer any questions that Max was giving him, so he kept silent throughout the duration of Max's questions like why does he have a mask or how he found their house and what all did he see. Kaizer had his own reason to not answer anything, not because he was slightly annoyed, but because he didn't want to respond, thinking that he'll be turned in or something.

Max realized that Kaizer wouldn't say anything and he wanted to just introduce himself to him and he said, "I'm Maximus. But just call me Max. It kinda fits me, you know."

And Max sits down with Kaizer and just starts opening up a few things, which was a first because he could never tell a stranger anything and he said, "The reason why I was following you was because I wanted to see who you were and why you were looking at our house. No one would ever do that because my father would kill every stranger that comes to the house. He's a very mean monster, you know."

Kaizer didn't really want to speak, but he started listening to everything Max is saying and most of those were very hard to hear a kid going through a lot of stuff and just opens up about it to someone he just met.

"My mom and dad would just fight, fight, fight and I would be in the middle of it...for no reason at all. I would get really scared when one of them calls me and it ends up being beaten, slammed, thrown around, pinned, clawed or even...something very bad. My mom would just tell me to come to her bed, put her hands under my pants and she would touch me in places that shouldn't. And she would get naked and...it's just really disturbing. Why would she do that to me?" Max explains.

Kaizer blinks his eyes as Max keeps explaining everything and to hear it directly from a five year old is the most damaging thing ever. There was a part of him that didn't want to speak up, but something inside of him just wanted to. He eventually sighed heavily and placed his head under his legs and gave in to let him introduce himself.

"I'm Kaizer Beelzaba."

Max looks at him for a second and asked, "Beelza-what?"

"Beel-za-ba."

"Bee-zu-bo? That sounds like a weird name." Max replied.

Kaizer blinked his eyes at Max's comment for having a weird last name, but he couldn't fault him for that because of his age and that he couldn't pronounce it perfectly. He then tells the little white tiger cub and said, "At least you have parents."

"I wish I could just run away from home. That way, they wouldn't find me and they wouldn't beat me up and stuff." Max said.

It really broke Kaizer's hidden heart to hear it because he felt like he was the only one that had a rough early life, but after listening to Max...it dawned on him that Max's life is much more rougher and he felt like he understood the same thing. Max looked at him and said, "You didn't tell me to get lost."

"Why would I?" asked Kaizer.

"My parents always tell me to 'get lost' because they think I'm a nuisance for being born and that I got in the way of their lives. Sometimes, I ask myself...what did I do wrong? Why am I making them angry? How come I never felt...loved?" Max answered.

Kaizer lets his guard down and just felt completely sorry for the cub because he knows what it feels like to have a rough upbringing and Max asked, "Did your parents ever hurt you?"

"They've died...a long time ago." Kaizer said, sadly.

Max blinked his eyes twice and he said, "I'm sorry."

Kaizer never thought that he would find someone who feels the same way as he always did when he was alone; feeling like no one is there for you or being stuck in a rough rut and he knows what that feels like. Kaizer said to him, "It's not your fault."

Max is slowly starting to like Kaizer because he felt sorry for the teenage assassin and he sees him as a friend and he said, "Will I ever see you again?"

Kaizer thought he would be on his mission to assassinate his father, but with the observation of everything he saw in that house...he doesn't want Max to be left alone again with all the things he's had to put up with and he said, "We'll see."

"Okay."

Max looks at the sun and sees it's getting really late and he said, "Uh-oh...I gotta get home before my parents do...otherwise I'll be locked in the closet again."

That rose Kaizer's eyebrow after Max mentioned that he's gonna be locked in the closet and he quickly said, "All right. I'll see you later."

"Bye." Max said, as he quickly runs off.

As Kaizer watched Max leave, he stood up and felt something he never felt before; sympathy. As a person who never feels any kind of sympathy for anyone...there was something about this cub that really thought otherwise. To have a common ground with and for someone to understand their pain...he just felt bad for the poor cub and wished that he would just take the cub with him to keep him safe.

He sighed heavily as he brushes it off and just walks out to find a place to rest for the night, but not before looking back and whispering, 'We'll meet again, Max.'

* * *

At least it's a first impression. Stay tuned for more!


	9. Keeping Max Company

After the first meeting...the two tigers meet again without the parents around.

* * *

Chapter 9: Keeping Max Company

As the next day came by, Kaizer makes his way over to the house to observe more on Xiaoshin, yet he found himself distracted thinking about Max and how he had suffered enough torment as a little kid and it made him think back on the time his parents were killed and how it triggered his current state on hos he's closed himself off, yet Max is the total opposite, despite dealing with abusive and cruel parents that just mistreat him so terribly.

It surprised him to know that these two have a lot in common and he's only known him for one day and maybe he'll at least try to get to know him a little more, but just in case he asks him about himself, he's gonna try to get off the subject. He sighs heavily and walks down the hills to the house and he noticed that both parents are leaving and the argument is nonstop and that irritated Kaizer to the point where he could just easily kill both of them and take Max with him.

As they went their separate ways, Kaizer remained as vigilant as possible to make sure he's not exposed or caught and when the coast was clear, he jumped out of the trees and landed to the front of the house on his two feet and he was immediately surprised to see Max standing there all along, jaw-dropped.

"How did you do that?" asked Max.

Kaizer blinked his eyes at that question and he replied, "Practice. All tigers do that."

"They do?" asked Max.

"Yeah. You're a white tiger, aren't you?" asked Kaizer.

"Uh-huh. Wait...I'm a white tiger?"

That question surprised Kaizer the most that Max had no idea he was a white tiger or born like one and there was a bit of an awkward silence brewing between them and Kaizer broke the silence and said, "Yes, you are. And so am I."

Max couldn't tell by the mask on his mouth and turns his head to the side and said, "No, you're not."

"Yes, I am."

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am."

"Are not."

"Yes, I am."

"Prove it."

Kaizer couldn't believe how persistent this kid is, almost like a younger version of himself and he just lets out a defeated sigh and gave in and just exposed his entire face and that drove Max to a shock that he really is a white tiger. He gasped softly and said, "You really are a white tiger."

"Yep. I'm a white tiger, just like you are." Kaizer answered.

The realization of the fact that they're the same species completely puzzled Max, but it was good to know that besides his parents, he's one in the same and he asked, "Are there more of us?"

"Possible." Kaizer added.

"That's cool." Max said.

Not a few minutes pass by and Kaizer follows Max to the inside of the house and in his room and Kaizer couldn't help but see how it looks like from there; like everything threw up. Wood splintered up all over, dried blood across the wall and floors along with some claw marks, ripped and torn clothes and everything all over the room. He takes a deep shaky breath and couldn't help but wonder how could he live like this.

"It's a little messy, but...it's my escape from my parents fighting and arguing." Max said.

"When you said your life was rough, you weren't kidding." Kaizer said, looking at the room.

Max nods his head in agreement and he sat down on the edge of the bed and said, "Yeah. It's pretty much what I've been used to. There were times that I could stay here all day so I wouldn't have to put up with their problems. And they always say I'm the one to blame."

Kaizer found it hard to believe that Max was the cause of how they are and he said, "I know it's none of my business, but...why couldn't you just run away?"

"I tried, but it fails everytime. I try to escape, but either my mom or my dad would bring me back there and I'd receive a lot of punishments from them; most of which include being stripped out of my clothes and got whipped." Max replied.

"Whipped?" asked Kaizer.

Max lifted up his vest and shows Kaizer the many whip scars and claws on his stomach and shoulders and that puts Kaizer in a very shocked state that he had to endure all of that and Kaizer asked, "How did you...?"

"I ask myself that same question each time. I'm always afraid to wake up every morning because I don't know if I would die today or tomorrow if it grows worse." Max answered.

Kaizer blinked his eyes a few times over this and if he was in Max's position, he wouldn't know how he'd react to it too, but would imagine the pain he would go through. Max looked at Kaizer with a slight twinge of fear and sadness in his eyes and he said, "What have I ever done to them?"

* * *

Hard question, isn't it? There's more you can handle.

He comes over to Kaizer and just hugged his waist and Kaizer didn't know what to do or how to react to it and he wanted to shove him way, but the feeling was overpowering that he didn't need to, so he just hugged him back. That pretty much lets him know that he's not alone anymore and actually identifying himself to the little cub only wants to make him stay with him more.

'You're not alone, Maximus.' Kaizer thought.


	10. Thoughts of a Tiger Cub

Kaizer has flashbacks on a very traumatic experience when he was a kid and how he's a little more like Max.

* * *

Chapter 10: Thoughts of a Tiger Cub

Later that day, Kaizer was leaving the house after spending some time with Max and as he turned around, he said to the cub, "I'll come back soon, okay?"

"How soon?" asked Max.

"Just...soon."

After Max waved bye to him, Kaizer just walked out of there to go back to his camping spot where he's been at for the past several days now and while he was there, he was thinking a lot more about Max and about how he's got to live with people like that; especially the ones that were raising him. It's really sickening to know that someone so young would go through plenty of suffering.

As he looked at the sky, he remembers that one fateful moment that he witnessed his parents get killed by someone and it just completely made him feel like like the world was totally against him and all the times he's been all alone in the world, being pushed away, called a monster many times and that's something he'll never get over.

Because of that encounter, he's really put his duties on hold to just keep this one tiger cub company while his parents are gone and he wasn't sure about the reason, but he's starting to believe that they're abandoning Max on purpose and that doesn't sit well with the teenage assassin. It's one thing to be mentally abused and live a rough life, but to purposefully abandon a young cub like Max just bothered him.

It shouldn't be that way, but he just couldn't shake it off for some reason...but that's not the major concern...at one point earlier, Max said that he's the only friend he's got and places his trust on him. That part really made Kaizer guilty because this cub has no idea that he's an assassin sent to kill his father and knows that it's the most dangerous way to be friends with one or get closer to one.

But at the same time, he related so much to Max when it comes to living through a rough life at an early age and how painful it feels to experience what it's like and understood it really well and if he could have a choice, he could take Max away from his parents for his safety and let him stay with him.

He got a little frustrated and torn between being loyal to his duty as an assassin or protect the only friend he's just made and he lets out a big sigh and whispered, "What do I do?"

Later that night, he laid down on the ground, looking at the moon and imagined himself in Max's position where he would be beaten, mentally abused and molested by his own parents and the pain he would have to endure and how afraid he would've been every waking moment to go through it, not knowing what day would happen if he were to die at the hands at one of his parents.

As he kept imagining what that life would be like, he just reverted back to how he got to witness what Max is going through and he opened his eyes and for the first time in his life...he felt one emotion that comes to mind; fear and sadness.

One lone tear fell on his face as he looked up at the sky and whispered, "Max..."

* * *

Pretty hard for Kaizer when he's an assassin and something inside of you changes when you meet a person that knows how you feel. We'll get more Max and Kaizer in a minute!


	11. Taking a Risk

How far out of his way will Max go to see Kaizer?

* * *

Chapter 11: Taking a Risk

Two days have gone by since Max last saw Kaizer and he knows that he'll come back soon, but still...he wonders how soon is too soon? As he thinks about it, Max wanted to see how he's doing, maybe come by and talk to him and hang with him for a while. The only way to do so is to just actually leave the house and find where he is, but there was one thing standing in his way...his abusive, violent parents.

He knew that Max would get himself in trouble if he wanders outside of the house without his parent's knowledge and could get physically harmed because of it. He lets out a deep sigh and just has the urge to defy his parents only once and then come back before they even knew he was gone. And even if they do know he's gone, he would always sense it and try to run and hide from them.

Soon enough, the sounds of glass breaking and fights are growing louder and louder and Max knew he wasn't gonna take it another second, so he sneaks out of the room and looks at Xiaoshin and his mate getting in a fistfight with each other and she went and delivered the first punch to him and slugged him down hard and it was Xiaoshin's turn to let his fists to do the talking and beats her up twice and slammed her to the wall.

"(Bleep) you!" Xiaoshin shouted.

"Well, (bleep) you and your bull(bleep) too!" the tigress exclaimed.

"Why would I stand around a selfish little bitch like you?!" Xiaoshin exclaimed.

She gets herself up and angrily looked at him in the eye, panting furiously and said, "You can't stand me, that's fine! I can't stand living with your cheating ass either!"

"And just what makes you think that I want to stay with you?" asked Xiaoshin, with a bitter growl.

"Oh, I don't know...because I'm selfish and horny. You're nothing without me." she said, smirking at him.

Xiaoshin pinned her down to the ground and just kissed her passionately and began stripping out of her clothes and she does the same to him and Max quietly groans in disgust and while the two made out ferociously, Max knew it was time to sneak out of there and he went up to his room, opened his window and took a deep breath and remembered what he's doing this for.

He crouched down on all fours and leapt out of the window and landed on the ground with ease and then, he stood up, dusted himself off and looked back on what he just did and he knew that they were too busy being all violent and kissy and he just took off running from the house to find Kaizer.

"I'm coming, Kaizer." Max said, as he ran.

* * *

Question answered. Sorry if it was short. Max goes off to find Kaizer all by himself and who knows what kinds of danger lurk in the forest? Stay tuned!


	12. Finding Kaizer

And Max is getting his first taste of what happens when you walk all alone to find your friend.

* * *

Chapter 12: Finding Kaizer

Max was walking all around the forest to find his only first friend and even though it has been only 2 days, for him it feels like eternity and when you're five...sometimes time seems like it's going too fast and feels like forever to some degree. But he was determined to do whatever it takes to find Kaizer and he searched high and low to find where he is, but no sign of him yet.

As he resumed his searching, he noticed some tiger foot tracks right in front of him and as he looked at those, he assumed that it could be Kaizer's and he smelled the tracks and he picked up the scent from there and just followed it. It completely helped him to find where he is and as the tracks stopped in this little cave, he went inside there to see if he's there.

"Hello? Kaizer? Are you there?" asked Max.

The cave looked really dark and scary like, two of the things Max doesn't like more than anything, but he's trying his best to put that fear aside to find wherever Kaizer is. He takes a few deep breaths and calms himself down in order to not give himself away to some degree.

He's completely unaware that someone's following him and didn't pay it any attention until he heard those footsteps coming right behind him and as he stopped, the steps also stopped too. It was all too weird for him and as he kept going, the steps come back again and it started to really scare him.

"Kaizer? Is that you following me?" asked Max, fearfully.

The footsteps came gradually closer to him and he felt a tug on his shirt and he immediately screamed in terror and backed away and soon enough, he accidently bumped into someone and as he turned around, he saw a huge amount of bandits coming at him and surrounding him. Max just whimpered in terror and one bandit asked, "Where are your parents, little man?"

"I...I don't know." Max lied.

Just then, one bandit comes at him with a knife and he said, "You know...a kid like you shouldn't be out here all alone. In fact...we love to kill weak, spineless little children."

Max didn't like the sound of what they meant and he immediately bolted out of their way and ran as fast as he could, but the bandits were hot on their trail as they chased Max down faster and he panted as heavily as he went, trying to get out of the cave.

"Get that little kid!" another bandit shouted.

"HELP ME!" Max screamed.

Just then, Max stopped when he noticed that there was a little cliff that's close to the other side of the trail and felt like he was trapped and as he turned around, he saw the bandits coming close to him to kill him and they chuckled sinisterly as they pulled out their weapons and the lead bandit said, "There's nowhere to go...but up."

Max whimpered and he didn't know what to do at that point and he just closed his eyes and just as the bandit was gonna slice him up...

Every bandit already got sliced, stabbed and slaughtered and as the leader turns around, he found himself face to face with Kaizer. He growls and said, "You!"

"Yeah, its me. I believe you got something that belongs to me." Kaizer said, with a stern growl.

The lead bandit turned to Max and he said, "Why him?"

Kaizer didn't respond to the answer and just took his katana and sliced him down to the ground and watched him fall down to the ground and he turns around and sees Max still anticipating to be killed and he comes towards him and said, "It's me."

Max opened his eyes and saw Kaizer right in front of him and he immediately gives him a hug and cried on his shoulder and Kaizer had no idea how Max got there, but just decided to save the questions for later and he said, "Come on. I'm taking you with me."

* * *

Kaizer to the rescue! What happens next? Find out!


	13. Protective Assassin

And Kaizer shows his protective side for the first time.

* * *

Chapter 13: Protective Assassin

Kaizer takes Max outside of the cave and places him to where he is and after he set him down, Max couldn't help but look around for a little and he asked, "Is this where you live?"

"Not to live. Just to stay for awhile." Kaizer answered.

"How long is awhile?" asked Max.

"I don't know. Just for a few days or if I decide if it's time to go." Kaizer replied.

Just befor Max was gonna ask another question, Kaizer stopped him midway and just said, "Let's not ask any more questions, all right? But I should ask you some...what were you doing here?"

Max could tell that Kaizer was a little serious and somewhat alarmed that he showed up without his knowledge and he asked, "Are you angry at me?"

"Do I look like I'm angry at you?" Kaizer asked, in a serious tone.

Max blinked his eyes a couple of times after seeing Kaizer getting serious and he replied, "You sound like it."

"Well, I'm not. Do you know that you could've been killed with those bandits? You know better than to go wandering all by yourself! What if something happened to you?" Kaizer exclaimed.

Max saw a little bit of anger in Kaizer's face and it was one that he knew all too well and he lowers his head down and said, "I'm sorry."

Kaizer lets out a heavy sigh and calmed himself down a little and said, "No...I'm sorry for almost yelling at you. It's just...for some reason, I knew you were coming for me and if something were to happen to you, I would not forgive myself."

"You're that worried about me?" asked Max.

Kaizer didn't know whether he should keep it to himself or let him know that and he took a heavy sigh and said, "I hate to admit it, but I am worried about you. I don't really show it that much."

"Why?" asked Max.

"First, I just wanna know why you'd come out all this way to find me." Kaizer said.

Max sighed heavily, scratched the back of his head and replied, "It's been 2 days since you've been gone and I thought maybe you were lost or something, so I decided to go out on my own to find you. My parents don't even know I'm here...so I snuck out of the house. I didn't wanna risk getting clawed or injured by one of them if they knew I was gone, but I was willing to take my chances."

Kaizer did not know what to say after that explanation...the fact that he snuck out of the house to avoid getting caught by his abusive parents to look for him...it just shows that Max has true loyalty at a very young age and it made him think clearly that he's not like anyone else.

"You did all of that...for me?" asked Kaizer, a little surprised.

"Yeah. You're my friend." Max replied.

That really touched Kaizer to know that he's found a friend in Max...though he clearly doesn't deserve it because of his current job and duty and he really wasn't sure if he would stick around with him that longer if he told him and he lets out a deep sigh and he said, "Listen...there's something about me you should know."

* * *

Kaizer's confession coming up next!


	14. Kaizer's Confession

And here comes Kaizer's confession...and you'll see a side of Kaizer like never before.

* * *

Chapter 14: Kaizer's Confession

Max was open to hear what Kaizer was gonna tell him, but Kaizer felt scared...deep inside that Max would immediately reject him or run away from him if he knew his position, so with a deep breath, Kaizer looked at Max in the eye and said, "I'm an assassin."

Max was a little confused as to what it meant, but knowing his father's duty...he immediately figured out what it means and he asked, "A killer?"

Kaizer sighed softly and replied, "Yeah."

Max never expected his first friend would be a killer and the thought of it was really shocking to him and he asked, "Why didn't you tell me?"

"If I were to tell you that, you would've ran away from me. I was actually sent to assassinate your father by someone that I work with and capture him in the process. But he was too fast for me and I ended up getting defeated by him. So...I went over to your house to observe what goes on in that house so I could have a second chance at killing him...and then you showed up and I saw that you were being tortured, abused and taken advantaged of. It really made me see that I wasn't the only one that had to deal with suffering, so I placed that mission on hold so I can keep you company. I didn't know how to tell you because you would just leave me behind, thinking that I would kill you." Kaizer answered, with the final sentence ending with a cracked voice.

Kaizer closed his eyes and tried to fight back tears, but it was really hard to do so because of all the things he kept for so long over the years that there was no other way to let it out other than that. The minute Kaizer opened his eyes, the tears started coming out and that made Max feel sorry for him to live through that and Kaizer said to him, "If you want to run away from me after I told you about me, I completely understand. It is true what others say...I am a monster."

Max didn't really go anywhere and he came closer to Kaizer and said, "Not to me."

Kaizer turns to Max with a deepened expression on his face and asked, "Why not? Don't you know that I'm an assassin?"

"You're not an assassin to me. You're my friend. I wish that I could go wherever you go where I won't see my parents again." Max replied.

"But...would you want an assassin as your friend?" asked Kaizer.

Max nodded his head and he said, "Of course. I don't wanna do what you do, but I just want to be by your side because I got no one else."

That was one point that Kaizer couldn't disagree with and he asked, "But still...why me?"

"Because you're my best friend, Kaizer." Max answered.

Kaizer's eyes were overflowing with tears and Max quickly hugged him tightly, which really surprised Kaizer the most and he wanted to get him off, but the embrace overpowered him to the point where he just had to hug him back and started crying again. Kaizer looked at Max and said to him, "I'm not gonna let anyone hurt you. Even if I were to put my life on the line for you...I'll gladly do that."

"Thanks, Kaizer." Max said.

"No...thank you, Max...for being my only friend." Kaizer said, with a half-whisper.

* * *

Well...here it is. Max is still trusting of Kaizer and it looks like he'll be sticking around. Stay tuned for more!


	15. First True Friend

And for the first time ever...both white tigers find true friendship in each other.

* * *

Chapter 15: First True Friend

Kaizer then takes Max towards his camp where he can stay for a little while and as Max sat down, Kaizer started to make a little campfire so both of them could get themselves warm and the teenage assassin looked up at Max and said, "You know you took a risk coming to find me."

"I know, but I didn't know what else to do." Max answered.

Kaizer couldn't fault Max for that particular reason to do so because if he was in the little cub's position and stuck wround with parents like Max's, he'd do the same thing too and he sat down next towards him and he said to him, "Never thought you'd had it in you."

"Had what in me?" asked Max, a little confused.

"The strength and courage to get out of your way to find me. Not many people would do so...because I would just end up killing them unless they have personal business." Kaizer replied.

"Like what?"

Kaizer figured that it was the best interest to not bring it up because he didn't want to fill a 5 year old's mind with destructive thoughts with all the things he's done in the past and he said, "That's something you don't want to know."

Max couldn't get why Kaizer would keep everything to himself and he asked, "You don't really say anything much, do you?"

"It's personal for me. I'm a very private person." Kaizer answered.

Kaizer sighed heavily and then, he turned to Max and said, "You wanna know why I've done this job?"

"Kinda." Max answered.

"I was hoping you'd say 'no'. But...when I was younger, I saw my parents killed in front of my very eyes by somebody. It really scarred me and that's something I will never get over. I was determined to find the person that killed my parents so he can suffer the same way I did. And I'm not gonna stop until he gets what's coming to him." Kaizer replied.

The fact that Kaizer would do something like this surprised Max the most and he said, "At least your parents loved you."

Kaizer agreed with that and he looks at Max now and sees him as the only friend he has in the world after living a life of loneliness and he blinked his eyes twice and said, "I know. I don't want you to follow the same way I'm living. Just promise me you'll always do what's right."

"I promise." Max replied.

* * *

And it looks like they'll stick around for the long haul. We got more coming your way!


	16. Mission Bust

And this is where Kaizer's mission takes a huge turn.

* * *

Chapter 16: Mission Bust

Several weeks passed by and as Kaizer keeps an eye on the house, he started wondering what he'll do to help Max out of his situation and he has developed a soft spot for the cub, even though he does not want to admit the fact that he has one because assassins never have any of those. All they know is that when you kill, you don't have any remorse whatsoever. But something about Max really clicks with him so well that their past beginnings were similar to each other's...in different areas.

Meanwhile, he keeps an eye on Max's father to see what he's up to now and when he walks by to sneak in to see how Max is doing, he notices a couple of rhino guards coming to the house, completely confused about what's happening there, but saw that they're holding a 'wanted' poster on Xiaoshin, wanting their arrest.

He felt like he was gonna lose his chance to kill Xiaoshin, but decided to stay and watch what's happening anyway and plus...Max would never see or know about his father at all, which would be a huge relief, but it won't be the end of the cub's problems.

The rhino guards comes over and bangs on the door to the house and stood there, waiting for someone to answer and the minute the door opens, it was Xiaoshin that burst the door open and he froze in shock for seeing the guards coming in and one said, "Xiaoshin...we finally found you."

The adult tiger assassin sneered at their presence and said, "And what does that supposed to mean?"

"All those days of running from the law are over with. You can't escape us this time because we're sending you to Chor-Gom Prison." one rhino guard added.

Xiaoshin growls at them for this and he said, "You'll do nothing of the sort."

One thino guard grabbed Xiaoshinby the wrists and pinned him to the wall, where he placed his hands behind his back and put the cuffs on him quickly and the guard to his face and said, "Too late to fight back now. We got the notice from one of your victim's families that you live here."

"After several months of searching, we finally caught you." another rhino guard added.

Xiaoshin got carried up by the guards and the tigress comes out of there, giving him one last look and it was filled with both relief and sorrow that he's gone for good and Xiaoshin takes one last look at Max, giving him an angry icy-cold stare, almost as if to say that he blames his son for allowing this to happen and he said to him, "You're next."

Max immediately knew what it means...that even though he's seeing his dad going to jail, the war isn't over yet and that's what scares Max the most...made even more so that he's being left alone by his mother.

Kaizer could sense that this isn't the end of Max's sufferings yet and when he witnesses Max getting beaten by his mother and being blamed for being born to him, he grew angry at his mother for putting the blame on him for no reason at all.

"I can't let him suffer anymore." Kaizer said, in a half whisper.

* * *

What's Kaizer gonna do now? Stay tuned for more!


	17. Kaizer to the Rescue

And now...the last time we see Maximus' birth mother with her random act of hatred over her son and what's Kaizer gonna do? Here's your answer!

* * *

Chapter 17: Kaizer to the Rescue

Another few weeks went by and Max's mother was completely fed up with Max being around and ever since Xiaoshin got arrested, she used up all of her energy to constantly beat up and molest Max and it instilled a whole lot of animosity between the two, even though Max didn't do anything to make her in that state of mind.

One day became the major breaking point where Max's mother brought in a huge amount of hatred towards him and after spending hours physically harming him and torturing him, she went ahead and just dragged Max out of the the house, with the cub screaming and resisting.

"Shut up! You've already put me through enough as it is!" Max's mother screamed.

Max cried out for help multiple times, but his mother just slaps him in the face, stomach and behind to shut him up and she yells out, "Nobody's gonna come for you because no one cares about you!"

Soon enough, Kaizer looks down on the trees and sees this sight of Max being dragged and beaten and wasn't sure where she's taking him, but he manages to follow both of them without getting caught in the process and kept a watchful eye on Max.

"Everytime I see you, I see your stupid, worthless father! I would've killed you when I had the chance, that way I wouldn't have to deal with this emotional distress you put me through!" his mother spat out.

Max didn't know what she meant, but he was too busy kicking and screaming to care and he wanted to run away from her, but there was no time to as his mother grabbed him by the tail and grabs his neck and said to him, "Now I'll leave you alone to die. As far as I can tell...I hate you and I'm disgusted to even be your mother."

She then throws him down to the hill and watches him fall down to the ground and just gave him an icy cold stare and walks away from him, vowing to never return for him ever again.

Kaizer witnessed this happening and if he had his way, he would've went ahead and killed her for leaving Max, but he wouldn't want to take that risk. Not based on fear or cowardice...but because he's always so vigilant and quick. Not long after she's gone, he sees Max laying there helpless and he couldn't bear to stand by and watch as he walks by the hill where he's laying there.

Max gets himself up and hears the rumbling sound of thunder coming in and it's a sound he most dreads because he's afraid of thunderstorms amongst everything else. The more rumbles he heard, the more scared he gets and he starts whimpering and crying at the same time. Kaizer slowly comes over to him and he places his hand above Max's shoulder and the cub looks up and sees him there.

Max quivered his lip and Kaizer said to him, "Your mom left you?"

"Yeah. Why would she do that to me?" asked Max, tearfully.

Kaizer didn't really have the answer to those questions, but he knows that he won't leave Max behind all by himself and he takes it up for himself to travel with Max to find a safe place for him to live with a new family and he said, "Come on. I'm taking you with me."

Max didn't hesitate to get on Kaizer's back to go with him and it was something new to him; having to carry a cub around...but he just needed to make sure he's well protected on this journey.

Kaizer quickly puts on a cape and wrap it around Max so he wouldn't get sick when the rain pours down of them and Max said, "I'm glad you're here."

* * *

It's a good thing Kaizer came for Max when he did? What's gonna happen next? You'll see!


	18. Traveling

After Kaizer rescues Max, they leave together and Kaizer will help Max find a safer place to live.

* * *

Chapter 18: Traveling

As Kaizer takes Max along on his travels, Max has always felt happy being around Kaizer because he looks at him as the big brother he never had before in his life and there was nothing else he would want other than to stick with him forever. In some sort of way, he sees him as his protector and for him to bring him along after his mother puposefully abandon him for no reason at all. Max stuck around Kaizer's side during the duration of the trip and he said, "I'd stick with you anyday."

Kaizer didn't really know what else to say, but he knows that it won't last forever. He just wants to explain to Max that it won't be long before they go their separate ways and that he can't always be there to protect him. Not because he didn't like him, but he wants to just continue on with his life and hope that Max will be safe and sound in a stable environment.

Later that night, Kaizer set up camp and just kept an eye on Max as he looked up at the sky by himself and he walks over to him to see if he's okay and asked, "What you doing?"

"Looking at the sky." Max replied.

Kaizer looked up at the sky with him and he blinked his eyes twice as he looks up at the stars for a while and he just sat down next to him and there was a moment of silence between the two of them that it's almost undeniable. Max looks at Kaizer in the eye and said, "Can you be my father?"

That kind of question really surprised Kaizer a lot because he was not expecting that to come out of Max at all and he turned to the cub and asked, "Be what?"

"Well...ever since you looked out for me, I felt like I needed someone who could just be there to take care of me and keep me safe." Max answered.

Kaizer wasn't sure how to explain this and he said, "Max, I'm flattered that you would think that way about me, but...I have to be honest with you. I can't always stay by your side forever."

Max widened his eyebrow after what Kaizer said to him and asked, "Why?"

"Listen, you have to understand. Even though your parents didn't want any part of you, this can't last forever. I mean...I got my assassination job to do and I don't wanna put my duties at risk, nor do I wanna put you at risk. I don't want you to experience the same things I do to survive in the world so you can turn out like I am. It's in no means that I want nothing to do with you. I'm just gonna find a safe place for you to live and be happy for the rest of your life...maybe have another family that's less chaotic." Kaizer answered.

Max blinked his eyes at this and he said, "But I like being around you."

"I know you do, Max. But there has to be a point where I can't always be there to protect you when you're in trouble." Kaizer added.

Max's eyes were getting misty-eyed as Kaizer explains his reasons and the fact that Kaizer's syaing those things filled Max with fear and grief that he'll be alone again and he doesn't wanna go through that again. Kaizer read Max's eyes and it tells him that he doesn't want to be alone anymore and continue suffering and he doesn't want that for him either and Kaizer said to him, "But I'll always be your friend."

Kaizer immediately gets tackled by Max as he hugs him deeply and cried on his shoulder and the cub said, in a tearful voice, "I don't wanna lose you."

"And you won't. I told myself that I'll help you find a place for you that's safe and that's what I'm gonna do." Kaizer said.

Max sniffled and said, "Okay."

"You gotta be strong, Max." Kaizer said.

Max nodded his head in understanding and he said, "I'm gonna miss you."

"I'll miss you too." Kaizer replied.

Later on, they went to bed with Max sleeping on Kaizer's side and Kaizer takes one more look at Max and here he was; the only person that understood him and eventually befriended him in the end. He gently pats his head for much needed support and really endeared to him.

'Thank you for being my only friend, Maximus.' Kaizer thought.'

* * *

One more chapter and this story is complete!


	19. Always Friends

And we wrap up this story with a wonderful ending!

* * *

Chapter 19: Always Friends

The next day, Kaizer and Max continued making their way to find Max a safe place for him to live where he can remain happy and secure in himself and hopefully get past the nightmare he's been living in for the past 5 years with his parents and he was gonna miss Kaizer so much after he finds that one place that's safer and Max takes a look at Kaizer and asked, "How much further is it?"

"I don't know. But we'll find it. Just don't worry." Kaizer replied.

Soon enough, they caught a lucky break as they saw a leopard coming in and the minute Kaizer saw that he was looking for a child to place him in the orphanage, it was like a perfect opportunity to do so. He sat Max down and he said, "Why don't you go with him, Max?"

Max looks at the leopard for a second and he seemed a little bit scared about this and said, "I don't know, Kaizer."

"Listen to me, I don't know this guy...but he looks like he can take good care of you." Kaizer insisted.

Max didn't know if this could work out, but the look on Kaizer's face meant that he's serious about this and he looked at the leopard and said, "Are you sure?"

"Yeah, I'm sure. But don't worry...maybe someday, we will meet again. I'm not quite sure when it'll be, but I know I'll never forget about you." Kaizer said.

"Do you promise?" asked Max.

The one look on the tiger cub's dark blue eyes really gave a sense of pleading and hopefulness and Kaizer responds, "I promise."

With one last hug, Max looked at Kaizer in a tearful face and he said, "I'm gonna miss you."

"I know you will." Kaizer said.

As they let go, Max got out of the bushes and walked over to the leopard and said, "Excuse me, sir."

The leopard turned around and saw Max there and he immediately said to him, "Are you lost?"

Max looked at him in the eye and didn't really know what else to say, but as the leopard looked at the scars, bruises and ripped clothes Max has, it was already clear to him that he's been through a lot and he asked, "Where are your parents?"

"My mother just abandoned me and my father's in jail." Max answered.

That was literally shocking for the leopard to hear that and as Max told him that he's been molested, clawed, scratched, punched and all those things to him, the leopard immediately told him, "Well...don't worry. I'm gonna take good care of you until you have a new family."

"Can you really do that?" asked the leopard.

The leoaprd immediately picked him up and said to him, "Of course I can. I'll make sure you're taken care of."

Max started thinking this could actually work and the leopard asked, "What's your name?"

"Maximus."

"How about I call you Max for short?" asked the leopard.

Max nodded his head at this and the leopard offered his hand to take Max somewhere safe and the cub looked at it for a while and he looks like he really meant what he said about keeping him safe and he takes the hand and goes with him and for the first time, Max definitely felt safe.

He was unaware that Kaizer was just looking on and watching Max go with this guy and he whispered, "We will meet again, Max."

And with that, Kaizer disappeared out of sight after helping out Max with everything and he got back to his routine; being an assassin. But he can take comfort in knowing that there is a good side to him to finding a friend.

* * *

And that's the end! Thanks for SpiritualLoneWolf for this idea and I've enjoyed writing it and I hope you enjoyed reading it too! AniUniverse is out!


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